Nutcracker.



L. M. SAWIN.

NUTGRACKER.

APPLICATION FILED JULY 16, 1-913.

Patented May 26, 1914 Law fitness as $1 v 971,151- L e sifer 777. 8 cum in sHlNukaN. D. c.

UNITED STATES PATENT orrron.

LESTER 1V1. SAW'IN, OF MINNEAPOLIS, MINNESOTA.

NUTCRACKER.

To all whom it may concern.

Be it known that I, LESTER M. SAWIN, a citizen of the United States, residing at Minneapolis, in the county of Hennepin and State of Minnesota, have invented new and useful Improvements in Nutcrackers, of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to improvements in nut crackers.

Its object is to provide a simple and durable device of this kind adapted to break the shell of a nut so that the meat may be easily removed without unnecessary crushing or breaking.

A further object is toprovide an adjustable nut cracker quickly adaptable to receive various kinds and sizes of nuts.

In the drawings Figures 1 and 2 arerespectively front and rear elevations of my improved nut cracker, Fig. 1 being partly broken away to show the connection between the spring and one of the handles. Fig. 3 is a side elevation of the cracker, the jaws being shown in section to illustrate their slidable mountings upon the shank, and Fig. 1 is a sectional view taken on the line i 1 of Fig. 1.

Referring to the accompanying drawings, I have used the reference numeral 10 to indicate the shank of the cracker, which consists of a steel bar flanged at its upper end to form a stop 11 and flattened at its base to form a mounting 12. The levers 13, forming handles, are fulcrumed upon pintles 14, in the mounting 12. Said handles are normally spread by the spring 15, which is interposed between them and secured to one of them by the clip 16. The jaw 19, perforated at one end to snugly fit and slide upon the shank 10, is formed with a conical recess 20 in its upper side and with a depending lug 21 in which the pin 18 is mounted. This pin passes through slots 17 in the handles 13 to slidably connect said handles and jaw and transmit movements from the former to the latter.

A second jaw 22, formed with a perforation 23, extending at a slight angle therethrough to receive the shank 10, is arranged upon said shank above the jaw 19. The perforation 23 is formed to fit snugly at the sides of the shank 10 and loosely at the forward and rear surfaces thereof, and the angle of said perforation with respect to the jaw 22 is such, that when said jaw is parallel with the lower jaw 19, the edge 24 at the Specification of Letters Patent.

Application filed July 16, 1913.

Patented May 26, 1914.

Serial No. 779,324.

upper forward side and the edge 25 at the lower rear side of said perforation will impinge against the shank and grip the same when upward force is exerted upon the outer end of said jaw 22. The forward and rear surfaces of the shank may be roughened in any suitable manner (not shown) to enable the jaw 22 to more firmly grip said shank. iThis jaw 22 is formed with a conical nut retaining recess 26 on its lower side 1 vertical alinement with the recess 20 in the lower jaw 19. Transversely arranged notches 27, formed in the jaws l9 and 22, open into the nut retaining recesses 20 and 26 and are adapted to engage the ribs upon nuts, such as are found on English walnuts, to lock the sections of a shell together at their ends and prevent the same from spreading.

In operation, the handles 13 of the cracker are grasped in the hand of the user and the upper aw 22 is elevated upon the shank 10. A nut to be cracked is placed upon one end in the recess 20 in thelower jaw 19, and the upper jaw 22 is lowered to receive the upper end of the nut in its recess 26. The handles 13 are pressedtogether, against the action of the spring 15, thus exerting an upward pressure against the pin 18, thereby raising the jaw 19 which forces the nut against the now immovable jaw 22. Increasing pressure upon the handles 13 causes force to be applied by the lower jaw 19, in a direct line through the axis of the nut, until the shell is broken Earound its periphery, midway between its ends. The handles are then released and the nut is easily removed from the cracker.

The device is particularly advantageous, because of the ease with which accurate adjustment of the upper jaw is obtained for different sizes of nuts and by reason of the direct crushing force, applied through the axis of the nut, which results in the equal expansion on all sides of the nut shell, thus causing the same to break around its central periphery and permitting the convenient removal of the fragments of the shell from the meat without injury to the latter.

What I claim as new and desire to protect by Letters Patent is:

1. In a nut cracker, the combination of a supporting shank, a pair of handles secured thereto and a pair of jaws slidable longitudinallyon said shank and adapted to engage the opposite sides of a nut, one of said jaws being connected with and adapted to be moved by said handles and the second jaw being adapted to be firmly gripped upon said shank by pressure from said first mentioned jaw.

2. In a nut cracker, the combination of a supporting shark, a pair of handles secured thereto, a spring for normally spreading said handles, and a pair of jaws slidable longitudinally on said shank and adapted to engage the opposite sides of a nut, one of said jaws being connected with and adapted to be moved by said handles and the second jaw being adapted to be firmly gripped upon said shank by pressure from said first mentioned jaw.

3. In a nut cracker, the combination of a supporting shank, a pair of jaws slidable on said shank and means for moving one jaw toward the second jaw, said last mentioned jaw being firmly gripped upon said shank by pressure from said first mentioned jaw.

4. In a device of the class described, the combination of a shank, a jaw formed with a perforation to loosely receive said shank, a second jaw slidable upon said shank, and means for moving said second aw, said first jaw being adapted to be slightly tilted with respect to the shank and gripped thereon by pressure from said second jaw.

5. In a "device of the class described, the combination of a shank, rectangular in cross-section, a jaw formed with a perforation to fit snugly at the sides and loosely at the edges of said shank, a second jaw slidable on said shank, means for moving said second jaw, said first jaw being adapted to be slightly tilted with respect to the shank by pressure from said second jaw and gripped upon said shank by the engagement of an upper and alowertransverse edge of said perforation with said shank.

6. In a nut cracker, the combination of a shank, a pair of jaws slidable longitudinally on said shank, said jaws being formed with alined conical nut grasping recesses in their adjacent faces, means for advancing onej aw toward the second jaw, said last mentioned jaw being adapted to be engaged with the shank and firmly gripped thereon by pressure from the first mentioned jaw.

7. In a nut cracker, the combination of a shank, a pair of jaws slidable longitudinally on said shank, one of which is adapted to frictionally engage said shank and means for advancing the other aw toward sald T frictionally engaged jaw, said jaws being formed with nut grasping recesses in their adjacent faces and also with notches therein communicating with said recesses.

In testimony whereof, I have signed my name to, this specification in the presence of two subscribing witnesses.

LESTER M. SAWV IN. lVitnesses:

F. G. CAswELL, J. E. STRYKER.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents, Washington, I G. 

